For three months already the squares of the country have been hearing the demand for honest elections. CPRF has carried this demand through all the twenty years of its opposition activities. And we shall keep fighting for strict adherence to the democratic regulations at the elections. We stand for productive negotiations and agreements which may provide free expression of the will of people. But we are against signing any documents, covering mass violations of the election process.
Quite unexpectedly with the participation of the “United Russia” party there appeared an initiative to sign an agreement for honest elections. We are very much surprised by this attempt to impose upon us a document, which hasn’t resulted from general civil dialogue and talks between parties, which hasn’t been discussed at round table negotiations with the participation of broad public community.
The proposal to stage the signing procedure of this agreement at the premises of the Ministry of Emergencies looks like an evident casus. Actually the participants of the pre-election campaign are being dragged into a collective violation of the law which forbids using executive bodies for the sake of political parties.
CPRF is of the opinion that the agreement between public forces is possible and necessary. But it cannot be concluded without joint elaboration of its principles. Otherwise it will become a folding screen for new abuses. Moreover, Vladimir Putin must become an immediate participant of the signing procedure of such a document. He must declare his readiness to bear personal responsibility for the observance of the agreement. And there are two reasons for that. Firstly, he is the leader of the “United Russia” party, which is still the ruling party having maximum broadest possibilities. Secondly, he is the head of the executive branch, which must provide that the elections are held in full compliance with the present legislation.
Gennady Zyuganov
Candidate for President of the Russian Federation